Balsa
traveled back along the path in the Aogiri that Jiguro and she had
taken from Kanbal. She traveled slowly, taking in everything with a
new eye. She had never come back this way after Jiguro died and all
she had were vague memories from her early childhood. After a week
of travel, she came to the place where Jiguro had fought the first
Spear sent to assassinate them. While she didn't clearly remember
everything about the path they took, she vividly recalled the fight
with the Spear. She stood silently for several minutes, unmoving.
It had been after that first fight that she had realized just how
much danger they were in.

Another
week passed before Balsa found the path through the mountain.
Despite watching carefully, she had missed it and had to backtrack.
She emerged on the Kanbal side of the Aogiri the next afternoon.

As
she looked over the terrain that she hadn't seen since she was six
years old, the old desire for revenge was kindled. She quickly
quelled her rising emotions and continued to the mountain road that
would take her into the heart of the city that served as Kanbal's
royal city. Her first objective was to determine the state of
Jiguro's tribe and his family. It would be tricky to find
information if perhaps Rogsam's son or grandson had taken the
throne and still harbored the desire to kill her. It was unlikely,
but not impossible. She would have to tread carefully. Her next
objective was to visit her mother and father's graves. Finding her
father's grave may prove more dangerous than trying to find
Jiguro's family.

Fall
was approaching in Kanbal, but Balsa could see none of the
eye-catching colors that would be covering many of the trees in Yogo.
After finding what was left of Jiguro's family, which was
relatively easy, Balsa searched vainly for her father's grave. He
most likely had not been given a marked grave, but she couldn't
help looking.

After
searching fruitlessly for her father's grave for almost two months,
Balsa chose to go in search of her mother's grave. Traveling the
now familiar roads of Kanbal, Balsa inquired and quickly located the
place where her mother lay.

The
grave was a simple headstone with her mother's name engraved in the
front. Balsa knelt in front of the grave and respectfully bowed her
head. She opened her eyes a moment later when she heard muttering.
Two old women saw her look up and quickly walked away, still
muttering. Suspicious, Balsa stood and quickly left. She had been
followed by various people ever since she began searching for her
father's grave and her well honed instincts were telling her that
it was time to leave . . . quickly.

As
soon as she began walking downhill toward the tunnel in the Aogiri
that would take her back to Yogo, she felt the hair on the back of
her neck prick. She didn't stop, but her ears began picking out
the paces of those walking around her. There was a pair of feet
walking at the same pace and in the same direction as she. She could
also feel other gazes boring into her from all directions. She was
surrounded and the intentions didn't seem to be good. There were
too many people where she was. If a fight broke out, innocent people
would be hurt. The past seven months that she had spent in Kanbal
had familiarized her with the layout of the city and escape routes.
She turned down an alley and the single pair of footsteps multiplied
into six, but there were still some hiding in the shadows.

Within
minutes, Balsa had led her pursuers to a deserted field. Harvest was
over and winter was approaching so no one was in any of the fields.
She bent down and picked up a handful of the dry soil. She let it
slowly fall through her fingers and watched the dirt blow to the
side. She closed her eyes and listened as her followers again
circled her. She counted fifteen in total, plus another that seemed
interested in only watching. She stood again and immediately dodged
several arrows that whistled through the air toward her. The sheath
came off her spear and she leapt over the small stone wall that hid
three of her pursuers. Before they could even draw their swords, she
had delivered sharp blows that rendered them unconscious. She
knocked several arrows off course as they flew for her. She closely
dodged an arrow that flew past her neck. As it passed, she saw that
the tip was dipped in poison. She held her spear tightly as half of
the remaining attackers surrounded her, blades already drawn. Balsa
recognized the style of the swords they held.

"You
were sent by the Emperor. Why would he wait until now? I was in
Yogo for over a month." None of the assassins spoke. Balsa dodged
another arrow and the six attacked simultaneously. Though they were
clearly very skilled and experienced fighters, Balsa had all of them
unconscious within five minutes. The archers were now her priority.
Suddenly, she sensed three far more dangerous presences. They had
been hidden in the streets watching. The archers were no longer
alive, but the people that she sensed were more dangerous than they
had been. She waited a moment and a person soon appeared. He didn't
wear a hat or cloak, but he was carrying a spear in his hand and a
sword on his back.

"Worthless
scum. They didn't even make you break a sweat." Balsa didn't
move, but listened as the other two circled around and closed in
behind her. One hung back farther with a bow and the other advanced
slowly with a pair of swords.

"Why
did the Emperor wait until now?" The man was confident as he also
began closing in on her.

"We
were going to wait until you were in the pass, but these clumsy
idiots failed to get you there." Balsa chose not to pose her
question again as the two came almost within reach. Again, Balsa
dodged a poison tipped arrow, but she didn't wait to be attacked.
The man with two swords barely managed to block her thrust as she
simultaneously dodged and attacked. She used the end of her spear to
throw a wave of dust and rocks at the other's face.

As
the fight progressed, it became obvious that the three were almost on
par with the Yogo warriors that she had fought beside, but they had
one major flaw. Though their combinations were well coordinated and
powerful, they clearly were dependent upon a tightly enclosed area.
The field Balsa had chosen was spacious and made it easy for her to
dodge attacks that would have been almost impossible to dodge in the
tunnel.

"Prince
Chagum still talks about you." Balsa, panting, retreated in
response to the comment. The three assassins regrouped and the
archer continued talking.

"The
Emperor was getting quite cross with his continual references to
things you and the healer taught him." Balsa remained quiet, but
her eyes narrowed slightly.

"Not
to mention his talk of the street urchins you made him befriend."
The archer was now smiling demonically and Balsa knew that the talk
was supposed to be riling her, but she couldn't stop her blood from
running cold. If anything had happened to Tanda, Shaman Torogai, or
Tohya or Saya, she didn't know what she would do.

"We
were hired to . . . cut the bonds that the prince had made with the
lowlife scum." Balsa felt her anger rage as it had when she fought
with Kalbo warrior. She didn't wait for the man to continue as she
attacked head on. Her fierceness caught all three by surprise as
they scattered in an attempt to confuse her. The archer was the
first to fall under her blade. Before him body hit the ground, she
spun and blocked the combined attack of the other two. They were
forced to retreat rapidly as she switched back to offense again. The
fear on their faces grew as her spear cut closer and closer to their
bodies. The fight ended shortly after with a final sweep of her
spear. Both dropped to the ground and Balsa stalked away, picking up
her sheath as she went. As she reached the edge of the field, she
heard stirring behind her. She spun around, flinging the sheath off
again. She was surprised to see the archer sitting up, uninjured.
He turned his gaze on her, but there was no longer any malice.

"What
am I doing here?" Balsa knew that she hadn't missed in her
deathblow, but the man was clearly alive. There was no blood and no
wound. A moment later, the other two stirred, then abruptly sat up.
After a few seconds, the three stood and walked away. They didn't
look at her, nor did she sense any malice from them. She waited
until they were out of sight before turning and walking toward the
road.

Before
she reached the road, she was again intercepted. This time it was by
nine men wielding spears. Balsa stopped and quickly evaluated each
of the men. Each of the men bore signs of combat and all were
clearly experienced. Balsa couldn't tell if they were looking for
a fight or not.

"Why
have you been looking for the grave of a traitor?" Balsa held back
a sigh. They were looking for a fight.

"No
reason."

"You
also sought out the children of another traitor and visited the grave
of a woman related to a traitor. What has been your purpose here?"
Balsa smiled gently.

"You
are the ones that have been following me. Have you been questioning
the citizens as well?" The man's face didn't show his surprise
that she had known she was being followed.

"Are
you the spear-wielder that fostered the Crown Prince of Yogo for a
year?" Balsa was surprised that the fact Chagum had been fostered
by a commoner had gotten out of the palace. Balsa could now sense
the hostility of the men surrounding her. She was still tired from
her last fight and these men were also highly skilled.

"Why
would the King's Spears be interested in something that happened in
Yogo?" Balsa watched as the nine men unsheathed their spears.
Balsa looked the man in the eye. Now there was nothing, but
hostility from the surrounding men. She sighed.

"I'm
sorry you must have the wrong person." The level of hostility
dropped, but didn't disappear completely.

"Then you wouldn't mind telling us the name of your teacher,
spear-wielder. Your talent is incredible." Balsa knew that her
style was similar to Jiguro's. She wouldn't be able to deny that
her teacher was from Kanbal. And her spear design was the same as
that of a King's Spear. She could think of no lie that would
appease their curiosity. And the longer she held her silence, the
more suspicious they grew.

Sorry it took so long!
Hope you enjoy and let me know what you think 

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